Marvel Comics From Avengers Disassembled to House of M

Avengers Disassembled wrapped up at the close of 2004, with House of M launching the next Marvel event in June 2005. This gives us nearly half a year of enormously important continuity progression in the Marvel Universe.

This time period is our first look at a Marvel Universe without Avengers (following that whole Disassembled ordeal), as well as the launch of some iconic runs from the 2000’s. The likes of Young Avengers, Madrox and X-Factor, Cable & Deadpool, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Astonishing X-Men, and New Avengers all start here.

In many ways, this time period – from mid to late 2004 up through 2005 – forms the crux of the Marvel Universe you’ll see in coming major events like Civil War. It’s an exciting time of reinvention in the Marvel U, and I highly recommend giving it a go before jumping ahead to House of M.

Without further ado, here’s how you can get from Avengers Disassembled to House of M in a chronological reading order. If you have questions or suggestions, I’d love to hear them in the comments, or directly via e-mail or twitter.

Worth noting that New X-Men takes an entirely new direction following the end of Grant Morrison’s and Frank Quitely’s epic run. Your core X-book is now Astonishing X-Men, with New X-Men taking a look at a younger group of new students at the X-mansion.

This collection of Daredevil issues will take you all the way to the end of Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev’s decade defining arc on Daredevil. Based on publication dates you could save Daredevil #76 through #81 (“The Murdock Papers”) until after House of M, but I prefer to read the entire story at once, and there shouldn’t be any continuity confusion this way.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

Hey, I just read the new age of Apocalypse, and it didn’t seem to fit within any of the x-men current continuity. Also, a lot of characters I had just read about died in that comic, but aim pretty sure their not actually dead in comics like Astonishing X-men. Some help would be very appreciated.

That order is also my order of preference. There is a reason that virtually all event focus on Classic Marvel characters. They are well designed and developed. In competent hands wonderful stories can be created around them.
The Knights stuff is for a more modern and urban feel. They work OK in that genre, but only exist because of the Marvel label. An indie put out these books would fold in a year. They aren’t nearly a clever or interesting as the creators think they are and they don’t sell too well.
Cosmic is overblown Star Wars Wannabee comics with hack writers and hack philosophers trying to write personifications as humanish characters and failing miserably. To be fair some of the artwork is spectacular. It is like Kirby trying to write and draw a comic. F for dialogue, A for art.
The R-Rated division is the excrement created by Lee / Kirby wannabes who can’t tell the difference between quality writing and poo jokes nor the artistic different between Jack Kirby and Rob Liefeld.

Our esteemed host seems to have a reverse preference to my own. Daredevil and Punished excrete all over the list. Everywhere we find Thanos written by Starlin making Kirby seem like Dickens. The Marvel Knights are clearly a huge favorite. The classic / mainstream Lee / Kirby / Ditko characters seem to be tolerated because well Marvel keeps making the Big Events about them so they can’t be avoided.

No matter how much sense it makes to read a couple years of the Avengers so you actually know who Jack of Hearts is, get an idea about She-Hulk, witness Red Mist, etc… before Avengers Dissasembled, the guide just can’t be bothered to put them in. No matter how much sense it makes to read a year’s worth of Spiderman, Hulk, Iron Man and the like to make sense of the first Big Event, you will not find them here. Instead we have every low level and low life character Marvel has ever released in exquisite detail. Do any of them matter in the least? Not a chance, but here they are. Talk about missing the forest for the trees…

Hi! Im a big fan of the lists but I’m a little confused about why the enemy of the state arc is listed as after the first 2 new avengers TPBs. In new avengers #8 Tony Stark and Logan have a conversation talking about what happened to him during the enemy of the state arc so it must have happened before this point, considering this conversation is a flash back to what happened during the ‘break out’ saga and that all happened back to back it’s clear ‘Enemy of the state’ must have happened before New Avengers #1. In enemy of the state as well we see Nick Fury in charge and no sight of Maria Hill which makes me feel it’s pre-secret wars as well putting it a lot earlier in the reading order than listed doesn’t it?

Hello.
Another problem in the list above : it’s for “Amazing Spider-Man #519-524 (Feb ’05)” (10 lines above the end of the list).
Issue #519 was released in June 2005. It’s the first for “New Avengers”.
In February 2005, Marvel released issue #515, the begining of “Skin Deep”.
So, should I begin with issue 515 or 519 ?

I recommend adding in X-23: Target X issues 1-6 right after X-23 1-6. And then NYX 1-7. Even though Target X was published a couple years later, it basically continues the story and fits in pretty well there, and NYX picks up a couple years later, basically right before she shows up in Uncanny X-Men. I’d recommend reading all 3 series to between ‘X-Men/Fantastic 4’ and Claremont’s ‘Uncanny X-Men’.

Hello.
There’s a problem with “Captain America #1-8 (Jan ’05) Winter Soldier Story Arc”.
According to marvel.wikia.com, the Winter Soldier Story begins with issue 8 and run to issue 14.
The issues 1 to 7 may be important to understand this story (I did not read yet) but they come with different titles (“Out of Time” and “The Lonesome Death of Jack Monroe”). Am I right to think I should read all these 14 issues ?
I have to thank you so much for this reading order. I certainly spend to much time on comics because of you but it’s so much fun !

Hi Dave, just a question about the Tanos #1-12 listing. Just curious if, say someone was Not following the cosmic reading order and just this list, would they be missing out by not reading Marvel Universe: The End before Thanos 1-12? I haven’t read it yet to know the significance of any connection, but noticed The End seems to only be listed in the Thanos and Cosmic guides and not the “Complete” guide, if that makes any sense. I guess that is the long way of asking, Should The End definitely be read before Thanos 1-12, or would it be more “optional” reading?

You know what, completely disregard this comment Dave. I just realized The End is listed in Part 1 of the guide. That’s what I get for getting impulsive looking through lists. I should spend less time in the lists and more time actually reading what’s in the lists. 😛 LOL

Simply copy the board and all it’s card to use it for you own comic reading checklist/journal. You can comment on each series to remember things about story or makes notes to yourself. The cards can be dragged between the different lists.

Hi, first off I want to say how much I appreciate the effort you put into making these lists. They have helped immensely to ease myself into the marvel 616 continuity.

However I want to ask if it’s safe to just go straight to House of M after reading Disassembled, or if not may I ask what the essentials are? This list is a bit big for casual reading, although that said I might just end up grabbing some character stories I’m interested in anyway. (Cable and Deadpool has my attention after reading a bit of Deadpool classic, also Daredevil gets a lot of praise).

Having JUST done this a few months ago, and only caring about major plot-points and mutants, I can say the only thing you NEED leading into House of M are the X-Titles (all X-Men, X-Factor, Excalibur, etc.). Not so much the individual character runs, though they are extremely fun.

If you’re interested in Civil War after HoM make sure you read Young Avengers and New Avengers.

Everything beyond that seemed extraneous to me, but, hey, I’m not the expert!

Just read The Pulse 6-9. Man was this good.
Can anybody tell me where and when I will find out what happened with that Secret War stuff?
The following CA & Falcon issues seem to handle more what happened after AntiCap and not what was happening between CA & Fury.

Ghost Rider is absolutely brutal. Read then delete in case your kids get hold of it!!
Hopefully there is not much more of him to come. Gore for gore’s sake and a plot that is basically a crap version of the first 5 seasons of Supernatural!!

It’s a lot of reading, and because of the hype/build-up for House of M I have found myself skipping a couple of these series just to get to the main event a bit quicker. Having said that, there are some great storylines here like X-23 and Gambit, but there are some I don’t prefer (Amazing Fantasy, Beta-Ray Bill, Thunderbolts) as they all seem a bit B-list.

Thank you so much for all these guides. I’ve read from Marvel Knights to this point with your help. I just have questions about how Nick Fury is still with SHIELD for Captain America’s Winter Soldier even though it is after Secret War and where did Sentry come from showing up in Young Avengers (#10) before being brought out of seclusion in New Avengers (so far as #6).

There’s some real continuity weirdness with Secret War because of an irregularly long publishing schedule (took almost 2 years for 5 issues). Long story short, you make a good point, and I’m updating the guide to reflect.

Thanks man, I was really just asking because I was hoping I didn’t miss a major event where Col. Fury comes back and re-establishes himself a top SHIELD or Sentry’s addition to the New Avengers. Thanks for the response and all the comic book guidance!

Hello.
Thanks for your guides.
But, regarding this specific one, I have a request.
There are a LOT of comics here. I don’t want/can’t read so much before reaching House of M (and Civil War after that). I would like more info about them in order to decide what to read now/ever.
My suggestion would be for you to rate/highlight the recommended comics in this list, stating if they are recommended “simply” because they are good reading, because they are important for the characters involved but not so much for the marvel universe in general (and/or House of M/Civil War in particular), because they are relevant in order to read House of M, or because they are relevant in order to read Civil War (without much details, I really like how you try to avoid spoilers, I rare quality). I know this is a bit/lot of work, but I’d greatly appreciate it.
One additional question. Is there some specially recommended readings before Avengers Disassembled in order to read House of M/Civil War? (some specifically referenced event, i.e.)
Greetings.

Ok.
I found this page (I know, it was not specially hidden):http://www.comicbookherald.com/best-100-marvel-comics-from-1998-to-2015/
which more or less answers my request. I still believe that’ll be great if you put a “recommended” tag in the proper series, with a link to that page, another page, or no link if it is not discussed elsewhere.
Thanks for NOT pointing me in the right direction. It will be a moderately severe annotation in my Book of Grudges. I hope it was your general carelessness or laziness, and not intentional 😉

I see Punisher MAX by Ennis up to Volume 3 in your guides, but I do not see any of the other Volumes. Where would those fall in the timeline? I love the series but I want to make sure I don’t get too far ahead and possibly spoil anything. Thanks!

After finishing Thanos 1-12, I’m a little confused. Is there some reason I will get to in House of M as to why this was listed, or is it simply on the list because it was published between Disassembled and HoM?

Loving the guides, I’m new to this, I’ve so far read through all of marvel cosmic and have read the avengers disassembled . I’m currently having trouble finding punisher max 1-12 on marvel unlimited. My only guess now is that it isn’t on there, was wondering if you could confirm this?

There was a report a little while back that Marvel’s MAX line would not be added to Marvel Unlimited. Hoping that changes and soon. Seems like a huge wasted opportunity not to included Alias with a Jessica Jones Netflix series on the way.

Also the Secret War is directly referenced in The New Avengers Vol 1 when Wolverine joins up in The Savage Land. And Enemy of the State is mentioned in The New Avengers Vol 2 in a flashback picking up right where The New Avengers Vol 1 leaves off.

Hey Dave. In this guide, Uncanny X-Men #460 and #461 are listed before the Wolverine: Enemy of the State arc, but they occur after in continuity. Your X-Men guide has the Uncanny #455-#461 block after Astonishing X-Men #7 – #12 and Nightcrawler #1 – #12 as well as the Wolverine arc – it would make more sense moving the issues to after all three of these arcs occur.

To follow up on that question, your X-Men reading order and this reading order disagree on Astonishing X-Men, Nightcrawler, Gambit, Uncanny, and Cable & Deadpool. Your X-Men reading order works perfectly from what I can tell, but this one doesn’t quite work. The X-Men order looks like this (the two agree up through Cable & Deadpool 1-12)

As I said before, your X-Men reading order works very well, but there are timeline issues in this one (specifically the Uncanny X-Men issues mentioning Wolverine: Enemy of the State but coming before those issues). Publication dates are also out of sequence in this order.

In no way am I trying to downplay the quality of your guides – I follow them very carefully and I greatly appreciate your work. Thank you for providing such an accessible track to understanding the Marvel Universe!

Looking at both orders again, I think publication dates serve as a slightly better ordering. Uncanny #460-#461 should come after the Wolverine: Enemy of the State and Phoenix Endsong arcs (there are a few pages where Wolverine is still in Enemy of the State mode, but in #460, there’s a “Several Weeks Later…” flag and suddenly both the Wolverine: Enemy of the State and Phoenix Endsong arcs are completed).

In Uncanny #460, there are references to how both arcs are concluded, so even though the Wolverine arc isn’t technically done at the start of the issue, I think it makes more sense to put the Uncanny issues (at least #460 and #461) after both the Wolverine and Phoenix arcs.

Hi again! Looks like I’m going to unlock the “comment in all the marvel events guide” achievement :P. I just ended Avengers Disassembled, and I have a few questions to ask.

Now, apart from this guide, i’m going to finish the Daredevil part in your first guide because I’m liking it so much. Also, i want to read in a close future the New X-Men trade, but having to read that with DD is so much issues to read along with this part. So, It’s essential that I finish the New X-Men before I get to this part? I’m saying that because I’m seeing so much mutant material, and I don’t know how much is this material is depending on New X-Men.

The second issue is: it’s necessary to read the Thanos part? In that case, What should I read before? I want to read him (I don’t know if that’s well said on a character xD), but suppose I’ll do it after Marvel Cosmic, I don’t know in this moment.

And the final question, Is I’m reading the first Deadpool not-limited series, but i’m a bit slow on that part. Can I read Cable and Deadpool now?

Dave, just wanted to give you a heads up here. The link to the “next” list in the reading order at the end of Avengers Disassembled goes straight to the start of House of M, skipping this guide completely.

I do a lot of ordering myself over on CMRO and I was wondering about your placement of of New Avengers #11 – 15……

based on the Marvel Chronology Project, theses issues take place after House of M, and only New Avengers #1 – 10 take place before House of M…..

there are many reasons for this……. New Avengers #11 – 15 is one arc that ends with the New Avengers “coming out” to the public, which Sentinel O*N*E* #1 from Decimation shows that the military guys in Sentinel Squad still think the Avengers are disbanded and dead….. so as of Decimation, the Avengers have still not “come out” yet…… also, Carol Danvers guest appearance in New Avengers #15, she specifically mentions House of M several times in her private conversation with Steve Rogers. You can’t really break #15 away from the rest of the arc because of the way #14 ends, so the whole things should take as part of the path from House of M to Civil War……

Now because of this move, though, this does actually cause a continuitity problem with having the Murdock Papers take place before House of M since Murdock is still out of jail at the beginning of New Avengers #10, so they actually do have to take place after House of M, and after New Avengers #10 – 15……

another correction I noticed….. Runaways #9 – 12 (the arc with the New Avengers) takes place after House of M….. in issue #12 when Molly sends Wolverine flying out of the church, and he lands in the snow, he says “Only 198 mutants left on the stinkin’ planet, and that girl’s gotta be one of ’em” establishing that this definitely takes place after or during Decimation….

Awesome! This is the exact list that I have been hoping for. I had peiced together my own reading list for this era by combining your Avengers, X-Men, and Captain America lists, but this is so much better than what I have been using. I have one question: I don’t see the Iron Man Extremis story on here. Any particular reason for leaving it off? It only stood out because that happens to be the storyline that I am currently reading through so I was looking for it to find my place.